


A Cup of Kindness

by myscribblingquill



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, Getting Together, Kissing, Marauders' Era, Mistletoe, New Year's Eve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-25 20:33:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13220691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myscribblingquill/pseuds/myscribblingquill
Summary: Mary and Sirius have been staring longingly at each other for too long and Lily's fed up with it. She might need a bit of help to get them together though.





	A Cup of Kindness

**Author's Note:**

> For [Grace](https://prongsno.tumblr.com) who sent me the prompt!
> 
> Happy New Year everyone!

Marlene: Mistletoe

Marlene: Thoughts

Mary: It’s poisonous

Marlene: For kissing

Mary: POISONOUS

Lily: Not kissing the mistletoe, kissing under it

Mary: dangerous

Marlene: But would you do it?

Lily: depends on who

Mary: If it was James Lily wouldn’t wait for mistletoe

Lily: I WOULD NOT KISS HIM

Lily: EVER

Lily: I WOULD HAVE TO BE BRIBED TO EVEN THINK ABOUT IT

Mary: The lady doth protest

Mary: and we all know you spend too much time thinking about James’ lips

Lily: LIES

Mary: You told me

Marlene: Back to the question

Marlene: Lil, remember how you described his lips as “surprisingly pink and very distracting”

Marlene: Mistletoe + kissing, Mary?

Mary: Sure, so long as they don’t have a cold

Marlene: Good

Lily: I hate his lips

 

Lily sighs and puts her phone down. It’s a lie; she knows it, Mary and Marlene both know it too. She doesn’t hate James Potter’s lips, she’s a little bit obsessed with them.

The purpose of the conversation wasn’t to get her thinking about James’ lips - again. It was to determine Mary’s feeling towards mistletoe, and Lily has to admit that it’s her fault. 

For months Mary’s been staring longingly at Sirius and he’s been doing the same. Both of them turning away when the other has almost caught them, and Lily has been restraining herself from making a fuss because it’s Mary. She’s not the most vocal person about her feelings. She talks but she won’t admit it. It’s plain on her face that she’s in love with Sirius and Lily wants her friend happy. Mary’s not happy and if Lily had to watch them pine for each other any longer she might go mad.

It’s also a good distraction from her thoughts about James, but she’d never admit that.

It was a few weeks ago that Lily came up with the idea of mistletoe for Christmas. When she’d thought of it, and told Marlene, it was mid November. Lily had forgotten all about it until Marlene had text her the day before. They didn’t have a plan yet, other than to cover their apartment with mistletoe and hope Sirius turns up at some point.

Her phone pings again.

 

Marlene: Where do we get mistletoe?

Lily: No idea

Lily: but i know who might know

 

She’s buries her phone under her bed sheets and goes to make a cup of tea. Lily knows that she’s going to have to text him at some point. James is Sirius’ best friend, and they’re going to need his help, but she’s going to resist for a little while longer - just to say that she can.

With her tea finished and Mary due home from the library at any minute, Lily digs her phone out of her bed, and texts him.

 

Lily: if i needed to get some, where would i find mistletoe?

James: are you planning something Evans?

Lily: answer the question, Potter

Lily: It’s for an important cause

James: I might be able to find some

James: I would need to know why first

James: Just to check what nefarious purpose you’re planning for it

Lily: coffee, tomorrow? I’ll tell you then

James: Are you planning a murder?

Lily: no

James: it is poisonous

Lily: I KNOW, but no murder

James: alright, coffee tomorrow

 

She flops back on her bed and groans. 

Even texting him brings a smile to her face, it’s unconscious and when she catches her lips twisting at the edges she tries to push the thoughts of him away but they always end up creeping back. Lily doesn’t think about him all the time. But she finds that she wants to tell him things, she turns to share a joke or a snarky comment, she picks out things that he’d find funny.

Lily absolutely refuses to be in love with James though.

She just likes thinking about his lips sometimes, and his hands, his arms, his hair, his chest.

It’s a little easier to not think about him when he’s in front of her, that’s mostly because she can look at him instead.

“Are you going to tell me why you need the mistletoe yet?” James asks.

James take a sip of his coffee, some ghastly concoction that they only make at Christmas. Lily can smell it from across the table as swills her spoon in her coffee. 

“It’s for Mary,”

James furrows his brow. Lily considers running her fingers over the little crease between his eyebrows, until he runs a hand through his hair and she’s distracted by that instead.

“Mary?”

“Yeah, and -”

“Sirius,” James finishes for her, with a grin, “Why didn’t you say?”

“Because I’m pretty sure he can read your mind,” Lily teases. It’s nice, and a bit scary, how close they all are. She’s close with Mary and Marlene, but James and Sirius are more like brothers.

James chuckles. Lily grins back at him, thankful that the shop is hot enough to pass of her blush as she shrugs off her jumper.

“Any idea when we’re going to need this mistletoe for?”

Lily rubs a hand down her face, and misses the way James watches her with the same sort of longing Mary and Sirius have for each other, “I don’t know. We can’t just stick it up and force them under it,”

“Christmas party,”

“Everyone’s going home at different points. It’ll be hard to get everyone together,”

James nods, “Are you seeing your parents?”

“I’m spending Christmas day with them but Tuney’s visiting on Boxing Day,” Lily gulps at the thought of her sister. They haven’t spoken for a while. Lily misses her but there’s not a lot she can do, even if Christmas is supposed to be the time for forgiveness.

“I’m sorry,” James says, and his hand twitches on the table. 

“It’s fine,” Lily forces a smile, “What about New Years,”

James face erupts into a grin, “The perfect time for a party, and some mistletoe,”

“I don’t think I’ll be able to persuade Marlene to let a drunk Peter into our flat again,” Lily warns.

James chuckles again, “We might have to dig out the hoover but we can do it at mine,”

And just like that Lily’s helping James’ plan a New Year’s Eve party. Her and James haven’t exactly got it all planned out but they make do. Marlene offers to send out invites, and organise how many people they can resembly fit in James’ flat. She sends him a picture of the banners she found and he replies with a picture of the hoovered floor.

They almost forget about the mistletoe until it’s too late.

 

James: Lil

James: LILY THE MISTLETOE

Lily: what about it?

James: We don’t have any

Lily: Shit

James: We have to go the garden center

Lily: Now?

James: Yes! Pick you up in ten minutes?

Lily: I am in my pyjamas

Lily: Fine

 

Her hair hasn’t been brushed all day and she hasn’t got a clean bra on. If it was anyone else she’d refuse to see them but she’s comfortable enough around James not to care. She leaves her hair, because James has seen it look worse, grabs a clean top and changes out of her pyjama bottoms. 

It’s New Years’ in two days, the shops are open but they’re in a strange lull period. Even the road are empty as James picks her up. His car smells nicer than usual. It could be because of the air freshener she put in there last time, or the faint scent of cologne she can smell from James.

Lily doesn’t want to think about how good he smells, so she turns up the radio and stares out the window.

“Nice pyjamas, Evans,” 

“I got changed, you twit,” Lily watches him check the road. His profile grins as she desperately tries not to look at his jawline. He clenches as another car goes whizzing past them. Lily almost groans out loud. 

By this point she’s sure that James’ jawline was designed to torture her. 

She wants to run her fingers down it, trace it with her fingertips as she kisses him. 

“How much mistletoe do you think we need?” James asks, unaware of Lily’s fascination with his jaw.

“Enough to make sure they end up under it,”

They end up with more mistletoe than necessary. 

When they’re hanging it up they realise that it’s definitely too much mistletoe. There are three sprigs for every door in James’ apartment. And they still have a few left over.

“We could suspend them from the ceiling,” Lily says. 

She’s got her back pressed to the wall. She knows where all the mistletoe is but she’s not going to risk getting caught under it with James - at least not until she’s had a few drinks.

James picks up on of the sprigs, and walks into his room.

“James?” 

Lily can’t help her curiosity and follows him. She’s been to his apartment before but not his room. It’s tidy, not neat, with the pile of folded clothes on the chair, stack of textbooks and folded bed sheets. 

He’s stood by the door to his ensuite. Lily had rolled her eyes when she’d found out he has his own bathroom. James reaches up and tacks the mistletoe above the door. His shirt rides up a little and Lily resolutely looks away.

“Who’s going to get caught under it there?” Lily asks.

James’ eye wided with fake innocence, “We have to plan for every possibility,”

“I don’t think they’re going to end up in your room,” 

James’ face falls for a moment, as if he’s forgotten why they’re doing this in the first place. For Mary and Sirius, to get them together, not for anyone else that might happen to be at the party.

“Mary might need the toilet, Lily,” 

Lily shakes her head at him and tries to conceal her smile. James grins, moves towards her and Lily momentarily panics. 

He’s so tall she has to look up at him and remind herself to breath.

“We’ve managed to cover every place they could be caught, so it make sense that other people will get caught too,” James says.

Lily tries not to take his words too seriously. But she knows if she takes a few steps backwards she’ll be stood under a sprig of mistletoe, and she could pull him under. It’s so tempting, her feet start to move backwards and then -

“What the hell is this?” Sirius’ shouts.

James gulps and takes a step back, “It’s called mistletoe,”

“Why is it here?” Sirius appears in the doorway in his leather jacket and motorcycle helmet in hand. His eyes narrow for a moment at Lily.

“It’s for the party,” Lily explains.

“Okay,” His eyes rest on James, and Lily turns around to see James’ ears turn pink, “Are you giving Evans a tour?”

“Shut it, Black,” Lily points a finger and he grins at her. 

She can feel the heat from James’ at her back, stifling and making her back sweat and her throat dries up. Lily shoots them both a glare and storms into the kitchen. She grabs a glass, without checking if its clean, fills it with water and drinks the whole lot.

“Are you okay?” 

James is stood behind her watching, Lily can imagine the look of concern on his face. Without turning around to look at him Lily nods, “I’m negating the hangover effects,”

She was planning on having a few drinks later in the evening, trusting that with enough people around she won’t do anything stupid. But she can barely act like a normal human around James when she’s sober. It might be a good idea to avoid all alcohol tonight. She has friends to shove together under the mistletoe and she needs to concentrate on that.

They get the last few bits ready, the drinks, the table cloths and champagne for the countdown. James drops her off at her apartment to get ready. They sing along to the Christmas songs that the radio is still playing and Lily laughs until her stomach hurts.

Lily hesitates for a moment, then reaches up and kisses him on the cheek. She doesn’t wait for his reaction, just says goodbye and runs inside before he can get a word out. 

When she arrives back at his apartment, it’s with Marlene and Mary by her side. She’s made them both promise to keep her away from James, although she hopes Mary will be busy with other things soon, and she doesn’t trust Marlene not to push her under the mistletoe with him.

It’s not hard to spot James, even over the crowd of people. It’s like she’s attuned to his voice, she can hear him better than she can see his hair sticking up. He’s laughing with Sirius and Remus, and her gut clenches.

He waves through a gap in the crowd and Lily’s sure there’s some kind of magnetism that pulls her towards him. She couldn’t fight it if she wanted to - and she doesn’t.

“Hiya Lily,” Remus greets her and hands her a drink.

She takes a swig before remembering that she’s not drinking.

“Any New Year's’ resolutions for you, Evans?” Sirius asks, and smirks at her.

“Nope,”

“I thought you might be taking up botany,” Sirius gestures to the mistletoe strung up around the flat. 

There are people kissing under them already. Some with pecks on the cheeks, other with brisk presses of lips and some obviously taking advantage of the excuse. Lily once again grateful that she knows where every sprig is. She’s not getting caught under any of it.

“Get into the spirit of the season, Black,” Lily retorts. She catches a glimpse of Mary’s purple dress between James and Sirius. “I’m sure you’ll find someone under the mistletoe,”

Sirius raises an eyebrow instead of answering. Lily shares a grin with James and pushes past them to find Mary. She feels a hand brush against her back and then it falls as she moves away.

“How much mistletoe did you buy?” Mary says when Lily finds her.

She chuckles, “It’s Christmas!”

Mary shakes her head fondly and her eyes skit around the room. She’s looking for someone and Lily grins because she knows exactly who it is.

“Are you planning on dragging someone underneath it tonight?” Mary’s emphasis on ‘someone’ makes Lily blush a little.

“Nope, but maybe you should be,” Lily teases and now it’s Mary’s turn to blush.

They stand and chat for a while. Lily tries to be subtle as she glances around the room looking for James. There’s a sprig of mistletoe a few inches to the left of Mary. It’s one of the extra sprigs they’d stuck to the ceiling so most people haven’t noticed it. If they can get Sirius over then it’d be the perfect opportunity. 

But neither Sirius or James are anywhere to be seen. Remus is chatting to someone Lily doesn’t recognise by the window, and he shrugs his shoulders when Lily shots him a questioning look.

When Marlene appears with drinks in hand, Lily pulls a series of faces trying to tell Marlene to stay with Mary and then goes to find Sirius. She hopes Marlene got the point and keeps Mary where she is.

She finds James in the kitchen his hands full of glasses of water, all about to fall onto the floor.

Lily grabs the top glasses and follows him towards the bathroom, “Where’s Sirius?”

“Not sure,” James kneels down and pushes the glasses through the crack of the slightly open bathroom door.

“Alice isn’t feeling great,” He explains as Lily hands her glasses down to her.

“Oh no,” Lily lurches forward ready to help her friend, “Is she alright?”

James’ hand on her arm pulls her back, “Frank’s with her,”

They make their way back to the kitchen and James’ hand migrates from her arm to her back. Lily’s thoughts are all jumbled. The room is warm and heady scents of perfume and people make her a little disorientated.

“We have to find Sirius,” She says, after gulping down a glass of water that James’ had placed in her hands. “Mary’s right by some mistletoe. All we need is Sirius,”

She puts the glass down a little hard than necessary and turns back towards the party. 

“You go that way,” She points in one direction, “I’ll go that way,” Before James can stop her Lily hastens out of the room, trying to calm her breathing and stop her thoughts from whirling too fast.

She finds Marlene, flirting in a corner, Remus playing a drinking game that seems far to complicated. Lily spots James from across the room and ducks behind a couple swaying to the music. 

When she gets to the mistletoe she left Mary under, she finds herself alone. There’s still the chatter of everyone else, laughter as she sees Remus dealing cards and the music is louder than it was a moment before. 

But to Lily the room is quiet. She blocks out the music and takes a deep breath.

The jittering in her arms calms a little and the flurry of butterflies in her stomach still.

She scans the room again, grimacing at a couple pressed up against the wall. Her eyes catch on the familiar shape of James, who’s grinning and pointing at the couple.

Lily takes a few steps forward, wondering why James is grinning like an idiot at two people kissing. When she’s closer she recognises the shirt the boy is wearing, and the purple dress of the girl press against the wall.

It’s the same purple dress Mary was wearing.

And Sirius was wearing the blue shirt that’s currently being crushed in what Lily assumes is Mary’s hand.

Lily lets out a surprised gasp. Mary and Sirius getting together was the point of the party, but Lily hadn’t been expecting it to happen without her and James interfering.

They break apart, and Lily can see that they’re both gasping for breath.

“You’re only supposed to kiss once under the mistletoe, Sirius,” Mary grins.

Sirius pulls away from the wall, his arms around Mary pulling her with him, and moves them so they’re no longer under the mistletoe. Mary looks up at the ceiling, laughs, and pulls Sirius back for another kiss.

Lily shuts her mouth to stop her jaw from dropping to the floor. A grin spreads over her face, and she remembers that she’s watching her best friend make out with someone and it’s a little bit gross. 

As she tries to contain her laughter, her gaze catches on James. He’s no longer looking at Sirius and Mary, but watching her with a joyous smile on his face. Lily grins and he cocks his head to the side.

On impulse Lily lets out a squeal of joy and throws herself into his arms. He catches her and pulls her off the floor, and Lily clings to him burying her nose in his neck. He’s put on more of his deodorant, or cologne, or whatever it is that makes him smell so damn good.

Her knees go a little weak, but it doesn’t matter because she’s pressed against James and he’s holding her up.

“We did it,” Lily cries. She doubts that she’d be this happy if she wasn’t in James’ arms, but she is, and it’s New Year’s and Lily really doesn’t care anymore.

“I don’t think we can take all the credit,” James laughs, and let her drop to the floor, “They found each other under the mistletoe,”

Lily keeps her arms around James’ neck. Unwilling to let go of her either, James hands come to rest of her hips and Lily can’t ignore how natural it feels.

“We put up the mistletoe though,” 

“True,” James tilts his head and his glasses slip down his nose.

Lily leaves on hand on his neck and uses the other the push his glasses back up. She lets her hand drift over his jaw and she puts it back around his neck. His jaw tenses and Lily finds her hand in his hair as his head moves. 

She barely has time to register his movement before his lips are pressed to her. Lily pulls him closer and kisses him back. The rest of the room fades for her view, till there’s only James. His hair beneath her fingers, his glasses pressing against her cheek, his hands moving up her back.

“There’s no mistletoe,” Lily says when they pull away from each other, their hands roaming across each other.

“Screw the mistletoe,” James laughs and kisses her again.

In the morning Lily wakes to the sound of laughter from somewhere in the apartment. She’s in James’ room, with his arm slung over her chest and the blankets somewhere on the floor.

The laugh echoes down the hallway again and this time Lily recognises it as Mary’s. Come to think about it, Lily doesn’t remember seeing her again after kissing James. They’d had to hang around till everyone else had welcomed in the New Year and then left for their beds. She’d assumed that Mary and Sirius would turn up at some point and she’d wish them a happy new year then, but now Lily remembers going to bed without seeing them.

She eases herself out from under James’ arm and creeps over to the door. It’s still open and she can see into the kitchen. Mary’s stood at the window, wrapping a scarf around her throat and grinning at the sky.

“Come on, Sirius,” Mary picks up a hat and shoves it on his head. The grumble from Sirius makes Lily chuckle as he pulls his coat on.

“New Year’s Day is for staying in bed,” Sirius complains. He slips his hand into Mary’s and the two of them head toward the door. “Not for going outside.”

“It’s snowing. We’re building a snowman,” 

Lily lets out a gasp. The curtains in James’ room are still shut but the brightness from outside makes sense now.

“James would let me sleep,”

“I’m not James,”

Sirius grins and leans down to kiss Mary, “I noticed,”

They disappear out the door, and Lily bolts over to the window pulling the curtains open. The ground is white. The snow has melted a little already but there’s enough for a small snowman. A groan from the bed has Lily turning away from the pretty sight. James squints at the bright light, but as his eyes adjust, a smile spreads over his face, and suddenly Lily feels a little bashful.

She smiles back at him and heads for the toilet. She must have drank a lot of water last night because her head doesn’t hurt, but her bladder is causing problems.

“Lily,” James cry causes her to stop in the doorway, “Wait there,”

He springs out of bed, and Lily shameless watches him walk towards her. James stops in front of her and she’s looks up into his grinning face.

“Mistletoe,” James nods to the sprig he’d put there the day before.

“Prat,” Lily laughs but reaches up and presses their lips together. 

Sirius had to right idea about staying in bed all day, Lily thinks, when she crawls back under the covers with James. Through the window she can hear Sirius’ laugh from outside and Mary’s squeals as they play in the snow. Lily moves closer to James, lets her eyes close and falls back asleep.

**Author's Note:**

> Did I exploit Jily for Blackdonald? yes, I did  
> Would I do it again? yes, yes I would
> 
> Thanks for reading <3


End file.
